NFL free agency had a record-setting start this year, with 20 players moving to different teams on contracts worth $10 million or more per year. That included a pair of safeties resetting the market, a running back getting big money that still fell short of expectations, and several high-profile trades.

It was the 25th anniversary of free agency, and the money was bigger and the pace faster. Here are eight takeaways from the first wave of signings.

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1. Defense cost the Chiefs a Super Bowl trip. Now they may be in worse shape.

The Chiefs released edge rusher Justin Houston and safety Eric Berry, cornerback Steven Nelson left for the Steelers in free agency, and in the most surprising move, they traded edge rusher Dee Ford to the 49ers for a 2020 second-round pick after placing the franchise tag on him.

Their only answer so far is adding former Houston Texans safety Tyrann Mathieu, who will replace Berry, on a three-year, $42 million deal, and smaller moves for linebacker Damien Wilson and defensive end Alex Okafor.

Do the Chiefs have more moves planned? As of now, they're down their top two edge rushers from a year ago and have more work to do to fix their porous secondary. They might once again be asking quarterback Patrick Mahomes to outscore opponents every week.

2. The Packers finally got into the free agent market.

Former general manager Ted Thompson shied away from building through free agency. From 2010 through 2017, Thompson spent only $8.575 million in free agent contracts. In six of those seven years, he didn't spend a dime.

This year, the Packers paid four players $183 million in contracts. They spent heavily to improve the defense, adding two edge rushers — Za'Darius Smith of the Ravens and Preston Smith of the Redskins — and former Bears safety Adrian Amos. Most observers were surprised they gave offensive lineman Billy Turner $7 million a year.

Welcome to free agency, Green Bay. It appears the Packers are doing their best to build up the roster around Aaron Rodgers.

Nine trades were agreed upon before the official start of the league year, in that latest sign that many of the NFL's younger general managers are willing to trade draft choices to fill roster needs with established players.

But the biggest deal involved a pair of veteran GMs for the Browns and the Giants. John Dorsey added wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and defensive end Olivier Vernon to Cleveland's roster, a year after trading for wide receiver Jarvis Landry.

It's another experienced decision-maker, Bill Belichick, who has been the most aggressive in making deals. He traded for defensive end Michael Bennett this week, and has picked up 14 veterans in trades over the past four years. Many of those deals involved players in the third and fourth years of their rookie contracts. His M.O. is to find roles for those players in the Patriots' offensive and defensive schemes, then either sign them to extensions or, more often, let them go in free agency and recoup compensatory draft picks.

This year provided a perfect example: The Patriots traded for then-Niners offensive tackle Trent Brown last summer, started him at left tackle en route to a Super Bowl championship, let him go to the Oakland Raiders this week on a megadeal, and now will get a third-round compensatory pick for him next year.

First, they didn't use the franchise tag on safety Landon Collins, who subsequently got $14 million per year from division rival Redskins on the open market. Even if the Giants didn't want to pay Collins, using the tag on him and then trading him would seem to have been the wiser move.

Then, they traded Vernon and Beckham — two high-level players at premium positions, with Beckham being one of the most dynamic playmakers in the league — for guard Kevin Zeitler, safety Jabrill Peppers and two draft choices (No. 17 overall and a third-rounder). That's three Pro Bowl players no longer on a roster that has several other question marks, including at quarterback with Eli Manning. It's a head-scratcher. They did reach an agreement with wide receiver Golden Tate on Thursday.

5. The safety market exploded.

After a year in which safeties struggled to get paid in free agency, five got contracts of $10 million or more per year. It's easy to see why Collins would set the market, having made three Pro Bowls in four seasons. Mathieu also cashed in, after succeeding on a one-year prove-it deal with Houston, and Earl Thomas joins the Ravens defense for $13.75 million a year.

Bell sat out the season and missed out on $14.55 million, then found his market softer than expected and signed with the New York Jets for $13.125 million a year. Not only did he take a pay cut, but his cash flow wasn't close to what he could have received in the Steelers' last offer. He received $5 million in the first year, and $7 million less than what he could have received in the third year.

He wanted a record-breaking contract for a running back. Instead, he made less than three safeties.

Bell wasn't the only running back who didn't get much love on the open market. Mark Ingram (Ravens) and Tevin Coleman (49ers) each took $5 million or less per season.

The Bills loaded up on offense, adding wide receivers John Brown, Andre Roberts and Cole Beasley, tight end Tyler Kroft, running back Frank Gore and four offensive linemen, including former Chiefs center Mitch Morse.

The Jets were more aggressive in terms of contract-size, doling out a massive contract for an inside linebacker in former Raven C.J. Mosley, who took home $17.5 million per year. They also added Bell, slot receiver Jamison Crowder and guard Keleche Osemele (in a trade with Oakland) to build up the offense around second-year quarterback Sam Darnold.

Oakland's splashiest move was the trade with the Steelers for star wide receiver Antonio Brown, but the deal that might deserve more scrutiny is the signing of Trent Brown to a deal worth $16.5 million per year. That made him the highest-paid offensive lineman in league history, less than a year after the team used first- and third-round draft choices on tackles Kolton Miller and Brandon Parker.

It's possible Brown ends up at right tackle for the Raiders. That's an important position, particularly in the AFC West, which features a pair of edge rushers in Von Miller (Broncos) and Joey Bosa (Chargers) who line up primarily against the right side of the offense, but not one that warrants salaries anywhere close to what Brown is making.